Garment trimming machine



April 9, 1946. v. .J. SlGODA ET AL 2,397,991

GARMENT TRIMMING' MACHINE Filed Nov. 25, 1941 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR5. Marc? J 5/00 A, (/ERRYJ/ 600A Y AND (/QSEPH CosENT/No Arron/:

April 9, 1946,

V. J. SIGODA' ETAL GARMENT TRIMMING MACHINE Filed Na 25, 1941 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 TORS April 9, 1946.

v. J. SIGODA ETAL GARMENT TRIMMING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Nov. 25, 1941 I f H W ///l/////l/IA INVENTOR5 V/cToRd Swa /1, (/ERR) 5/ GOD/1 ANDl/USEPI/ Costwrnva ATTO NEX Patented Apr. 9, 1946 GARMENT TRIMMING MACHINE Victor J. Sigoda, Great Neck, Jerry Sigoda, New York, and Joseph Cosentino, Richmond Hill, N. Y., assignors to Man-Sew Pinking Attachment Corp., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application November 25, 1941, Serial No. 420,350

v 25 Claims.

Thi invention relates to garment trimming machines, and more particularly to a dress or skirt trimming machine which is more particularly designed and intended for use by large scale production dressmaking establishments for accurately trimming or cutting dresses or other garments at high speed to the required predetermined length.

It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide a single-motor driven rotatable dress supporting form and cutting or trimming mechanism together with noveland effective means for smoothly and positively feeding the dress material to the rotating cutting member.

It is also anotherobject of the invention to provide an improved mounting and arrangement of the operating motor with the cutting and feeding mechanism whereby they may be easily and quickly moved as a unit into and out of operative relation with the rotatable dress supporting form.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved mounting of the feeding mechanism and means for operating the same from the motor driven cutter shaft.

An additional object of the invention is to provide an improved mounting of the rotatable dress supporting form and a drum connected therewith for unitary rotation and operative engagement by the feeding means, together with mean for vertically adjusting said form relative to the axis of rotation.

It is a further general object of the invention to provide a garment trimming machine as abov characterized which is comparatively simple in the construction and arrangement of its several parts, not liable to get out of order, and which may be operated at very high speeds with an appreciable increase in the quantity production of such trimmed garments over machines of this kind as heretofore used in the art.

With the above and other objects in View, the invention consists in the improved garment trimming machine and in the form, construction and relative arrangement of its several elements, as wil1 hereinafter be more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and subse quently incorporated in the subjoined claims.

In the drawings wherein we have shown one simple and practical embodiment of the invention and in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Fig. 1 is a front side elevation, partly in sec-- tion, of one embodiment of our improved garment trimming machine.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof, the garment supporting form being omitted.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view line 4--4 of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5 is a rear side elevation of the machine.

In the illustrated embodiment of our invention, we have shown the movable parts of the mechanism mounted or supported upon acommon base structure 5. Preferably, structure is in the form of a hollow elongated casting of light metal, such as aluminum alloy, and it is of the required form and dimensions to provide the requisite stability forthe movable machine parts.

At one of its ends the base'casting- 5 is centrally formed on its top wall with an upstanding bored boss 6 to receive the lower nd of a vertical shaft or spindle l which is supported at the upper and lower ends of said boss by the anti-friction bearings indicated at 8. A member 9 loosely surrounds the spindle I for vertical movement relative thereto. and supports a bearing plate Ii! having a sleeve I I extending downwardly through an opening in the member 9 and receiving the nut l2 threaded on the lower end of said sleeve. A base member I3 is rotatably supported on the member 9 by the anti-friction bearing means l4 and is rigidly connected with respect to'forces in a horizontal plane by means of a plurality of vertical rods 15 with the member it fixed to the bottom face of the dress supporting form Ii.

The rods l5 are vertically movable through spaced openings formed in the hub portion Zii of the internal spider I9 of a metal drum E8, the said spider hub 20 being rigidly fixed in any suitable manner to the spindle "l. Preferably, the cylindrical wall of the drum i8 ha an inwardly inclined upper end portion it! for the purpose of directing the material of the garment supported on the form I! to the feeding and cutting mechanism to be later described.

The member l6 has free sliding movement along the spindle I and the upper end portion of said spindle extends loosely into an axial bore 2| in theform H.

At the opposite end of the base 5, a'tubular column or standard 64 is suitably mounted at its lower end. Within this standard a threaded adjusting rod 65 is suitably mounted, and upon the same the traveling nut 66 has threaded engagement. One end of a horizonta1 rod 61 is taken on the this base wheels and the driving belt.

the vertically positioned shaft 42 in fixed ing relation therewith.

suitably fixed to this nut and extends outwardly therefrom through a vertical slot in the wall of standard 64, the other end of said rod being fixed to the member 9. Above the standard 54 v a suitable hand wheel 68 is fixed to the rod 55,

whereby said rod may be conveniently rotated.

It will be understood from this description that by rotating the rod 65, the member 9 and the rods l5 may be vertically moved to adjust the form I! relative to the spindle l and the drum 1 l8 and thereby position said form in vertically at right angles to the vertical pin or rod 22.- The other end of this rod 26 is rigidly connected by means of the clamping device 21 with a tubular rod 28. To this rod at one of its ends a supporting bracket 29 for an electric motor 30 is rigidly connected as at 3|. The other end of the rod '28 carries a supporting bracket 32 for thegear housing 33.

The vertically positioned drive shaft of the "motor 30 has a belt wheel 34 fixed to its upper 1 end and connected by drive belt 35 with a belt wheel 35 on the lower end of vertical shaft 3?,

which is suitably mounted in a depending bearing 33' on the. gear housing 33 and above theelongated housing structure 38 enclosing said Oneside wall of this housing structure has a lateral projection 39 connected with rod 28. The upper end of shaft 31 is provided with a pinion 48 in constant mesh with the gear 4| mounted in housing 33 upon dliv.-

The housing 33 is formed with an upwardly and laterally extending arm 43 upon which there is rigidly fixed a horizontally disposed supporting member 44. vOn each end of this supporting member vfreely rotatable vertically spaced apart feed belt sheaves or wheels 45 and 46 respectively, are suitably mounted. The corresponding sheaves 45 and 46 are engaged by the endless vertically spaced apart feed belts 4?.

To the vertical shaft 42 and immediately below the plane of'the lower edge of the drum l8,.a

cutting or trimming wheel is fixed. While various means might be provided for driving the feed belts 41 and rotating drum l8 and form H from-the motor 38, we preferably transmit the driving power in the following manner.

7 Above the cutter 48 vertically spaced apart drum engaging members 49 are fixed to the shaft 42 and between these members a drive wheel 59 for the endless belt 5| is also fixed on said shaft. This drive belt is engaged with a similar'driving screw and the bracket arm 51 on the gear housing 33, a suitable form of spring 58 is interposed. It will be evident from this construction that by adjusting the screw 56, the spring 58 may be properly tensioned to regulate the pressure engagement of roller 55 with the periphery of the cutter wheel 48.

While any preferred means may be employed for controlling the supply of operating current to the motor 30, we preferably provide the tubular rod 68 having a horizontal lower end portion 6| fixed in the arm 43. The current supply wires to the motor, indicated at 62, extend through the tubular rod 28 into the lower horizontal end SI of the rod 58 and then upwardly through the vertical portion thereof to a suitable hand operated switch indicated at 63, mounted on the upper end of said rod. This rod provides a convenient means whereby the cutting and feeding mechanism with the drive mean therefor may be bodily swung as a unit about the axis of pin or rod 22 into and out of operative relation with the drum I8. However, it will be understood that we may also use a pedal operated or other form of manual control switch for the operating motor if desired.

Having now described the several mechanical features of the apparatus, its operation will be understood as follows.

Beforevmoving the cutting and feeding mechanism into operative relation with the drum Hi, the skirt, dress or other garment is draped upon the form H with its lower end portion circumscribing thewall of the drum I8. ance with the desired predetermined length of the garment after trimming, the hand wheel 88 is then operated to vertically adjust the form ii relative to the drum l8 and cutter 48, in the manner above described and properly position the lower edge of the garment with respect to said cutter. The operator now swings the trim ming and feeding assembly into operative position as shown in the drawings, so that the mem here 49 will exert frictional pressure against the vertical drum wall, it being understood, of course, that such frictional pressures are applied through the interposed fabric material.

Current is now supplied to the motor 3!], and rotation is transmitted through the drive belt 35 and gearing 40, 4| to thecutter wheel shaft 42. This shaft transmits rotation to the belt drive wheel 50, which in turn drives the vertically spaced feed belts 41. The members 49 also driven through the shaft 42 transmit ro-' tation to the drum I8, and through the connecting rods l5 to the form l1. As the form is thus rotated with the drum, the folds of the garment material, in advance of the cutting member 48 are engaged by the feedbelts 4'! which press the same against the periphery of the drumwall and smoothly feed the dress or skirt material between the cutter wheel 48 and thefdisk 55.. It will be wheel 52 arranged between and secured'to the sheaves 46 engaged with the feed belts 41. p

Upon the inner side of the gear housing 33, a horizontally disposed lever 53 i pivotally mounted intermediate of its ends, as at 54. One end of this lever carries a pressure roller 55 freely rotatable about a vertical axis and disposed in the plane of the cutting or trimming Wheel 48. The other end of this lever 53 carries an adjustable screw 56 and between one end of this understood that as the drum [8 and form I! are 'rotatably. supported on anti-friction V bearings, said drum and form will be easilyrotated by the members 49. It will further be appreciated that such a machine is capable of operation at Very high speeds so that it is particularly desirable for large scale factory production of accurately trimmed garments.

In the drawings, we have illustrated a type of trimming'cutter 4B which produces a serrated or pinked edge on the garment. However, itisapparent that if desired, various other types of cutters might be used. t

In accordassign Further,.while we have herein disclosed a practical embodiment of our present invention, which in actual service has proved to be very satisfactory and highlyemcient, it is, nevertheless, to be understood that in so far as the essential features thereof are concerned, they might also be exemplified in various other alternative structural forms. Accordingly, we reserve the privilege of resorting to all such legitimate changes in the construction and relative arrangement of the various elements as may be fairly comprehended within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatablecutting member, and a common operating motor for said garment support and cutting member.

2. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatable cutting member, means to engage the garment and feed it to said cutting member, a single operating motor, means for transmitting rotation from the motor to the rotatable garment support and cutting member, and additional means operated by one of the motor driven parts for actuating said feed means.

3. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatable cutting member, means for feeding the garment material to said cutting member including an endless flexible feed belt, and a single operating motor for the garment support, the cutting member, and said feed belt.

4. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatable cutting member, means for feeding the garment material to said cutting member including a drum and means connecting the drum with the support for unitary rotation, an endless feed belt cooperating with the drum to feed the garment material to the cutting member, and motor driven operating means for the cutting member, garment support and drum, and said feed belt.

5. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a-drum mounted below the support, a rotatable cutting member to which the lower edge portion of the garment is directed by said drum, and an endless flexible belt coacting with the drum to feed the garment material to said cutting'member in the rotation of the support.

6. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a drum below said support and connected therewith for rotation about a common axis, a rotatable cutting member, an operating motor therefor, and means operativei driven by one of the motor driven parts and coacting with the wall of said drum to rotate the drum and garment support.

7. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a drum below said support and connected therewith for rotation about a common axis, a rotatable cutting member, an operating motor therefor, means opera-' tively driven by one of the motor driven parts and coacting with the wall of said drum to rotate the drum and garment support, and additional means having driving connection with said last named means for feeding the garment material to the cutting member.

8. In' a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted support, a rotatable cutting member, a drum for directing the lower edge portion of the garment to the cutting member, means connecting the drum to the support for rotation as a unit therewith about a common axis, and means for vertically adjusting the support independently of the drum. P

9, In a garment trimmingmachine, a rotatably mounted support, a rotatable cutting member, a

drum for directing the lower edge portion of the garment to the-cutting member, means connecting the drum to the support for rotation as a unit therewith about a common axis, an operating motorfor said cutting member, and means for transmitting rotation from one of the motor driven parts to said drum and garment supporting form.

'10. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted vertical'spindle, a rotatable cutting member, a drum fixed to the spindle for directing the lower edge portion of a garment to said cutting member, a garment support above the drum axially movable relative to the spindle, means connecting said support with the drum for unitary rotation with the latter about the spindle axis, and means for vertically adjusting the garment support relative to the spindle and said drum.

Y 11. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatable cutting member, an operating motor and driving connections between said motor and thecutting member, and means for feeding the garment material to said cutting member including a drum connected to rotate as a unit with the garment support, means for'rotatively driving the drum and support, means movable relative to the drum and coacting therewith to feed the garment material'to the cutting member, and means operatively connecting said two last named means with one of the motor driven parts.

'12. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatably mounted garment support, a rotatable cutting member, an operating motor and driving connections between said motor and the cutting member, means for feeding the garment material to said cutting member including a drum connected to rotate as a unit with the garment support, vertically spaced rotatable members coacting with the drum wall to rotate said drum and garment supporting form, a pair of vertically spaced apart endless belts coacting with said drum wall to feed the garment materialto the cutting member, and means operatively connecting said drum rotating members and the feed belts with one of the motor driven parts.

13. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatable cutting member, a garment supporting form and a drum mounted for unitary rotation, said drum directing the garment material to the cutting member, and an endless flexible feed belt in tangential relation to the drum wall and coacting therewith to feed the dress material to said cutting member;

14. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatable cutting member, a garment supporting form and a drum mounted for unitary rotation and vertically spaced apart relative to each other, said drum directing the garment material to the cutting member, an endless flexible feed belt in tangential relation to the drum wall and coacting therewith to feed the dress material to said cutting member, and means for vertically adjusting the garment support relative to said drum.

15. In a garment trimming machine, a rotatable cutting member, a garment supporting form and a drum mounted for unitary rotation, said drum directing the garment material to the cutting member, an endless flexible feed belt in tangential relation to the drum wall and coacting therewith to feed the dressmaterial to saidcutting member, andmeans for operating the rotatable drum and support and the cutting member and feed belt from a common; source of'power,

16. In a garmenttrimmingmachine, a rotatable cutting'membenagarment supporting formable cutting member, a garment supporting form and a drum mounted for unitary rotation, said drum directing the garment material to the cutting member, a pair of vertically spaced apart,

endless flexible feed belts ooactingwith the drum wall to feed the dress material to said cutting member, and a single operating motor and means operated thereby for rotating the garment support and drum and for operating said feed belts and cutting member.

18. In a garment'trimming machine, a garment support and feed drum mounted and arranged for unitary rotation about a common axis, a rotatable cutting member an endless flexible feed belt coasting withthe wall of said drum to feed the garment material to said cutting member,operating means for said feedbelt, and means for mounting said belt andits operating means for bodily movement relative to the drum to dispose said feed belt in operative or inoperative relation to the drum wall. W a v 19. In a garment trimming machine, a garment support and feed drum mounted and arranged for unitary rotation about a common axis,

feed the garment material to said cutting member, operating means for said feed belt, and means for mounting said belt and its operating means for bodily movement about an axis parallel to the drum axis to dispose said feed belt in operative or inoperative relation to the drum wall.

20. In a garment trimming machine, a garment a rotatable cutting member, an endless flexible I feed belt coacting with the wall of said drum to the drum above the plane of said rotary cutter,

an axis parallel to the drum axis to dispose said cutting member and feed belt in operative or inoperative relation to they drum wall.

21.In a garment trimming machine of the char cter described, in combination means to supp rt a garment, means to hold said garment supporting means, ,said garment supporting means being removable without manipulation of any parts thereof from the means for holding said supporting means, means to revolve said holding means, and cooperating means on said garment supporting means and said holding means to cause said garment supporting means to revolve with said holding means.

7 22. In a garment trimming machine of the character described, in combination means to support a garment, a circular member disposed below said'garment supporting means, said circular member being of an outer diameter at least substantially equal to the largest lower dimension of said garment supporting means, meansto revolve'said garment supporting means and said member, a cutting station disposed in substantially fixed relationship to the axis of revolution of said garment supporting means, and means cooperating with said circularmember to feed portions of the garment to be trimmed to and past said cutting station at an angular speed substantially equal to the angular speed of said garment supporting means.

23. In a garment trimming machine of the character described, in combination means to support a garment, a circular member disposed below said garment supporting means, said circular member being of a diameter at least substantially equal to the largest lower dimension of said garment supporting means, means to .revolve said garment supporting means and said member, a cutting station disposed in substantially fixed relationship to the axis of revolution of said garment supporting means, means cooperating with said circular member to feed portions of the garment to be trimmed to and past said cutting station at an angular speed substantially equal to the angular speed of said garment supporting means, said means comprising a belt contacting said circular member through portions of the garment being trimmed, and meansto'move said belt at a linear speed substantially equal to the linear speed of movement of the periphery of said circular member. 7 Q

24. In a garmenttri-mming machine, a garment support, a drum below said support, a trimming unit comprising a cutter mounted to rotate in a horizontal plane adjacent the lower edge of the drum and relatively movable feeding means coacting with the outer surface of the drum to feed the garment material to the cutter, said unit further including drive means for said feeding means having a part'frictionallylcoacting with and power operated means connected to eflect relative rotation between said trimming unit, the feed means and the drum about the axis of the garment support. 7 w

'25. The garment trimming machine as defined in claim 24, together with means for independently supporting and detachably mounting the trimming unit and power operated means in operative position relative to the garment support and the drum. a

. VICTOR'J. SIGODA.

JERRY SIGODA. JOSEPH COSEN'IINO, 

